Home Loans

A home loan is the largest financial commitment most people make, yet it's often chosen on a single number. The interest rate matters, but so does the comparison rate (which includes most fees), whether the loan offers an offset account or redraw, how it handles extra repayments, and what happens when a fixed period ends. The right loan for a family upgrading in Carindale can look quite different from the right loan for a couple downsizing in Wynnum. We start with how you intend to live and pay, then find the lender and structure to match.

Lenders assess your application on income, living expenses, existing debts, deposit or equity, and credit history, applying a serviceability buffer of around 3% above the actual rate to make sure you could cope if rates rose. Policies vary widely: some lenders treat bonus, overtime or casual income generously, others discount it heavily; some accept a gifted deposit readily, others want to see genuine savings. Borrowing above 80% of the property's value (a loan-to-value ratio, or LVR, above 80%) generally means paying Lenders Mortgage Insurance, which is why deposit size and the valuation shape both cost and options.

Structure is where a good broker earns their keep. Fixed rates offer certainty but limit extra repayments and can carry break costs; variable rates offer flexibility and usually a full offset account; a split loan can give you some of each. Principal-and-interest repayments build equity, while interest-only can suit specific circumstances such as bridging or investment. We also help you avoid common traps: paying for a package you won't use, cross-collateralising properties unnecessarily, or setting up a loan that can't accommodate a renovation or investment purchase you're already planning.